Posted on 07/14/2005 9:32:15 PM PDT by blake6900
Source: Rove Got CIA Agent ID From Media By JOHN SOLOMON, Associated Press Writer
Presidential confidant Karl Rove testified to a grand jury that he learned the identity of a CIA operative originally from journalists, then informally discussed the information with a Time magazine reporter days before the story broke, according to a person briefed on the testimony.
The person, who works in the legal profession and spoke only on condition of anonymity because of the secrecy of grand jury proceedings, told The Associated Press that Rove testified last year that he remembers specifically being told by columnist Robert Novak that Valerie Plame, the wife of a harsh Iraq war critic, worked for the CIA.
Rove testified that Novak originally called him the Tuesday before Plame's identity was revealed in July 2003 to discuss another story. The conversation eventually turned to former Ambassador Joseph Wilson, who was strongly criticizing the Bush administration's Iraq war policy and the intelligence it used to justify the war, the source said.
The person said Rove testified that Novak told him he had learned and planned to report in a weekend column that Wilson's wife, Plame, had worked for the CIA, and the circumstances on how her husband traveled to Africa to check bogus claims of alleged nuclear material sales to Iraq.
Novak's column, citing two Bush administration officials, appeared six days later, touching off a political firestorm and leading to a federal criminal investigation into who leaked Plame's undercover identity. That probe has ensnared presidential aides and reporters in a two-year legal battle.
On Thursday, Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid of Nevada pressed for legislation to strip Rove of his clearance for classified information, which he said President Bush should already have done. Instead, Reid said, the Bush administration has attacked its critics: "This is what is known as a cover-up. This is an abuse of power."
Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., said Democrats were resorting to "partisan war chants."
Across the Capitol, Rep. Rush Holt (news, bio, voting record), D-N.J., introduced legislation for an investigation that would compel senior administration officials to turn over records relating to the Plame disclosure.
Rove told the grand jury that by the time Novak had called him, he believes he had similar information about Wilson's wife from another reporter but had no recollection of which reporter had told him about it first, the source said.
When Novak inquired about Wilson's wife working for the CIA, Rove indicated he had heard something like that, according to the source's recounting of the grand jury testimony.
Rove told the grand jury that four days later, he had a phone conversation with Time magazine reporter Matt Cooper and — in an effort to discredit some of Wilson's allegations — told Cooper that Wilson's wife worked for the CIA, though he never used her name.
An e-mail Cooper recently provided the grand jury shows Cooper reported to his magazine bosses that Rove had described Wilson's wife in a confidential conversation as someone who "apparently works" at the CIA.
Robert Luskin, Rove's attorney, said Thursday his client truthfully testified to the grand jury and expected to be exonerated.
"Karl provided all pertinent information to prosecutors a long time ago," Luskin said. "And prosecutors confirmed when he testified most recently in October 2004 that he is not a target of the investigation."
Rove's conversation with Cooper took place five days after Wilson suggested in a New York Times opinion piece that some of the intelligence related to Iraq's nuclear weapons program was twisted to exaggerate the Iraqi threat. Novak's column identifying Wilson's wife as a CIA employee and Cooper's magazine piece came out a few days later.
Pressed to explain its statements of two years ago that Rove wasn't involved in the leak, the White House refused to do so this week.
"If I were to get into discussing this, I would be getting into discussing an investigation that continues and could be prejudging the outcome of the investigation," White House spokesman Scott McClellan said.
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Associated Press special correspondent David Espo contributed to this story.
Yeah, it turns out that Wilson was working for a company called Rock Creek, that was owned by Alamoudi, and run by Elias Aburdene, while he was investigating the yellow cake in Niger. While he was there he also did a little private business with his associates who happen to be tied to the oil for food vouchers. Wilson is a real piece of work.
And Alamoudi worked for Clinton. Doesn't that make a pretty picutre.
He also worked with Saddam and the oil for food players.
Chuck Hagel is also on his payroll, via a man named Elias Aburdene, the same guy who supports Joe Wilson.
Yep. They are as dirty as it comes in the OFF program. Wilson's up to his eyeballs in Alamoudi. It's just one big happy corrupt family.
And the hits just keep on piling up but they have no negative consequences for the whole lot of them.
Chuck Hagel has an Aburdene on the board of every charity or organization that he is involved with. They arrange all his trips and set the agendas, the guy is a traitor.
What money did Wilson and Hagel get from Alamoudi? Didn't I just hear that name today in the news?
Wilson was the last to see saddam before the invasion of Desert Shield and the last to see him before this invasion I think! Is Saddam Wilson's HANDLER?
How is Hagel on this guys payroll?
Wilson works for a company named Rock Creek enterprises, or at least he used to. Now he claims that he works for himself, but his office is still in their office and his email address is still on their server, or at least it was when all this was researched. Rock Creek was owned by Abduran Alamoudi or Al Amoudi (I've seen it spelled both ways) Al Amoudi is tied to BCCI and various Muslim support organizations and was an adviser to Hillary Rodham Clinton. He's now in jail. He turned Rock Creek over to Elias Aburdene, who runs it now and Joe Wilson and Chuck Hagel, too.
The guy donates to Hagel's PACs and is involved in everything that Hagel is involved in. If Hagel is on some commission, so is a member of the Aburdene family. If Hagel makes a trip out of the country, so does one of them.
Darn, this was for you.
The guy donates to Hagel's PACs and is involved in everything that Hagel is involved in. If Hagel is on some commission, so is a member of the Aburdene family. If Hagel makes a trip out of the country, so does one of them.
bttt
An old Freeper, Betty something used to have a ton of info on Alamoudi.
Rock Creek is an international investment corporation with ties all over the world, but mostly in Africa and Middle East. A lot of the business that they did involved the oil for food players.
Hagel is dangerous.
OMG!
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